Epic on developing DLC pre-game launch

DLC has become one of the most controversial aspects of this generation, with some consumers seeing it as little more than a money-making device that cheats them out of the full experience.

But it’s not that simple for developers; they have to plan for this type of content. So says Epic Games, anyways. Company figureheads Cliff Bleszinski and Rod Fergusson have spoken out in defense of DLC, claiming it’s a necessary part of the dev cycle.

“What people need to understand is that extra content is something that you have to plan,” Fergusson explained to GameInformer (via).

Bleszinki added: “You don’t just lift up a rock and say, ‘oh shit, there’s new levels!'”

“There are people who think that the first day of DLC development is the day after you launched,” said Fergusson. “That’s not the way it works.

“A lot of it is that you have to prepare and plan and manage your resources and your people and everything to allow for that.”

“I think that as the industry has matured we’ve gotten more into that,” he added about using DLC as an incentive to buy new instead of an Online Pass.

“It’s less about shipping what’s left over. It’s not about, ‘Oh, we had this map left over’… it’s keeping the disc in the tray. In a used game culture that you have to actively fight against, I think DLC is one of the ways that you do that.”

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